10 cruise ship suites that will blow your mind

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Luxury line Regent Seven Seas Cruises in 2016 debuted what is widely regarded as the most spectacular suite ever built on a cruise ship: The Regent Suite on the new Seven Seas Explorer. Spanning the entire front of one of the ship's top decks, it measures 4,443 square feet -- more than 50% larger than the average home in the United States.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises

The Regent Suite is priced at $10,000 per day, making it one of the most expensive accommodations on a cruise. The fare includes a wide range of perks including First or Business class airfare to and from the ship as well as private sedan transfers to and from airports.
Gene Sloan, USA TODAY

The over-the-top luxury of the Regent Suite is on full display in the master bedroom, which features a king size bed topped with a Savoir No. 1 mattress that cost $90,000. The mattress is filled with a special kind of horse hair.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Overlooking the front of Seabourn Encore on Deck 7, the Signature Suites measure 1,159 square feet, not including balcony space, and offer a large living room, two bedrooms and two full baths.
Seabourn Cruise Line

It isn't just the newest ships that offer spectacular suites. Cunard Line's classic Queen Mary 2, which debuted in 2004, continues to offer some of the most eye-popping accommodations at sea with its two-deck-high Duplexes.
Cunard Line

Dubbed Balmoral and Sandringham, the Queen Mary 2's two Grand Duplex suites measure 2,249 square feet. Each has a spacious living room and dining area on the ground floor and a large master bedroom on the second floor.
Greywolf Studios Limited

Each of Queen Mary 2's Grand Duplexes can be combined with four other adjacent suites to create a giant complex measuring more than 9,000 square feet -- several times larger than the typical U.S. home.
Greywolf Studios Limited

Sleeping up to six, the Royal Loft Suite offers a panoramic view over the back of the ship from a two-deck-high living and dining room level. The space has a dry bar and sofa that converts into a double bed.
Gene Sloan, USA TODAY

One of the most-discussed new suites of recent years has been the Reflection Suite on Celebrity Cruises' Celebrity Reflection, the fifth and final ship in the line's Solstice Class series. The ship debuted in 2012.
Celebrity Cruises

Bedrooms in the Owner's Suites on Marina and Riviera feature mahogany Bel Air beds upholstered in steel-blue mohair and walls covered in Austyn cashmere. All of the rooms in the suites were decorated using Ralph Lauren furnishings by designer Susan Bednar Long.
Oceania Cruises

While generally catering to the mass market, Norwegian Cruise Line also offers some of the most spectacular -- and pricey -- suites at sea, including four large Deluxe Owner's Suites on its recently unveiled Norwegian Escape.
Danny Lehman

Located near the top of the Disney Fantasy on Deck 12, the Roy O. Disney Suite looks out over the vessel's bow. It's one of two signature Royal Suites on the ship.
Matt Stroshane, Matt Stroshane, photographer

The Roy O. Disney Suite has two bathrooms designed with granite and marble finishes. The master bathroom features a whirlpool bathtub, a rain shower, double sinks and a television built seamlessly into the mirror.
Matt Stroshane, Matt Stroshane, photographer

An owner's suite in more than just name, the Viking Star's Owner's Suite was designed as a personal retreat for Viking founder and chairman Torstein Hagen and features many of his personal items, including books from his collection and family portraits on bookshelves.
Gene Sloan, USA TODAY

One of the biggest stories in the cruise world in recent years has been the arrival of a new generation of unprecedented, over-the-top suites on ships: Big, bold and beautiful cabins that can cost tens of thousands of dollars per voyage. Just how over-the-top are they? Scroll through the carousel above to see for yourself. We've assembled our picks of the 10 most spectacular suites at sea.

Our picks include the Regent Suite on luxury line Regent's new Seven Seas Explorer — at 4,443 square feet, bigger than the average American home — and the sprawling Wintergarden Suites on luxury line Seabourn's new Seabourn Encore.

As one might expect, luxury lines such as Regent and Seabourn have been rolling out many of the most stunning (and pricey) suites. But there's also been a super-suite arms race in recent years among the big, mass-market cruise operators such as Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line, which are catering to an ever-broader range of customers.

As you'll see in the photos above, the new crop of mega-suites offer multiple bedrooms, living areas with dining rooms and sprawling balconies. Sweeping views of the ocean are a given. But the allure of such accommodations doesn't end there. In addition to expensive furnishings and designer style, the top suites at sea now almost always come with around-the-clock butler service, priority embarkation and disembarkation, priority access to the ship's spa and restaurants and other perks.

Sleeping up to six, the Royal Loft offers a panoramic view over the back of the ship from a two-deck-high living and dining room level. The space has a dry bar and sofa that converts into a double bed.
Gene Sloan, USA TODAY